We Can Get Through This
by ryanmarissaforever88
Summary: After all that's happened, can Ryan and Marissa realize that they were meant to be and move foward? But Volchok's watching them..set mid season 3.


Author's Note: Okay, this is my first story and I'm really nervous..please be nice? Read/Review? I know that everyone says that but I really want to know if I should continue or whatever. And, of course, the disclaimer- none of this belongs to me. I wish. If I did, Marissa wouldn't have died, she and Ryan would have lived happily ever after and the OC would still be running. So, obviously, the OC and its characters do not belong to me. Thanks.

It was a Friday evening at the beach when he saw her sitting at the lifeguard stand, drinking. Walking over, Ryan rubbed his neck uncomfortably. "Hey."

"Hi." Marissa replied curtly. "You know, Volchok will be here soon. You should probably go."

"Mariss, what are you doing with him? He's such a bad influence on you!" He gestured towards the now half-empty bottle of vodka she was holding. "You're drinking again! And doing god knows what else... You're better than this, Marissa. You deserve better than him!"

Marissa was angry. She stood up, grabbing the bottle from the porch. Gesturing wildly, she demanded, "Who are you to judge me? You broke up with me, Ryan! On the phone! I was sitting..RIGHT..HERE." she sniffled. "Volchok was there for me when no one else was. And what I do is none of your business anymore." She looked at him firmly.

"Marissa, you don't understand.." Ryan tried to explain himself. He knew it wasn't his place anymore to try and save her, or protect her, but after all they had been through, he needed to at least try to warn her about Volchok.

"No, Ryan! YOU don't understand! What is this? You don't want me but you don't want anybody else to have me either?" Marissa yelled angrily and turned away from him, beginning to walk down the lifeguard stand ramp to leave.

"See that's where you're wrong.." Ryan said softly, but Marissa still heard. She stopped walking.

"What?" She asked quietly, still facing away from him.

"That's where you're wrong. I don't want anyone else to have you. Because I want to have you." Ryan said, lacking a little confidence, biting his lip while nervously awaiting her reaction.

Marissa gasped quietly at his confession. "What about Sadie?" She hated to ask and take the chance that this was all just a dream, that Ryan really didn't want her back, but she had to.

"Sadie's gone. She left." Ryan walked up behind her and said quietly.

"Why?" She bit her lip.

"Because she couldn't be with someone whose heart had been claimed a long time ago and never returned." he took a breath before continuing. "And she knew I could never love her as much as I love you."

Marissa froze. Her heart skipped a beat. Ryan had said _love_. Not _loved._ He used the present tense. Not the past tense, indicating that what they had was over and done. Gone. He said _love._ He _loves _her. Still. She turned around slowly and looked into his unbelieveably blue eyes and saw the honest truth and pain behind them. He wasn't lying. He was hurting..because he missed her.

He was suffering because he had had to watch her go back down into a spiral of drugs and alcohol with _Volchok_ of all people. _Volchok_, who Ryan hated. _Volchok_, the person she had turned to when she was rejected by Ryan and desperately needed to numb the pain. When she desperately needed an escape, she didn't care how- and she had turned to Volchok. And Ryan couldn't stand what she was doing to herself.

Marissa threw her arms around Ryan. Burying her face into his shoulder, she breathed quietly, "God, I missed you so much."

Ryan put his face down next to hers and smelled her scent that was uniquely Marissa. "I'm so sorry. Never again." he whispered into her ear. "I love you, Riss. I've always loved you."

Marissa pulled her head back slowly to look at him. "Thank you." She smiled shyly. Replacing her head on his shoulder, she remained quiet. After a moment of pure torture for Ryan, she whispered back, "I never stopped loving you, Ry."

And for right now, the fact that Volchok was on his way mattered to neither. The fact that Marissa was more gaunt than she had been in a long time and that her complexion was pale from the coke..they would deal with that later. But for now, they had found each other again. And they would move foward together.

But the fact that his girlfriend was very intimately hugging Ryan mattered to Volchok. He stood out of sight of the two of them, not that in their moment they would have noticed his presence anyway, watching them embrace. Volchok was the bad boy..he wasn't supposed to have it bad over a girl. He wasn't supposed to cheat on his girl and then push away the slut simply because he heard a noise and thought it was Marissa. He was supposed to not care about anything other than hooking up with that slut..But he did. He knew that Marissa was the best thing that had ever happened to him, and he would not let her go back to that "Little Bitch" without a fight. _She_ was not supposed to cheat on _him._ If anything else, it should be the other way around. But for now, Kevin Volchok stood in the gradually darkening light of the beach, watching _his_ Marissa with Ryan, clenching his fists in silent anger.


End file.
